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•T h e IF P • H al to n H ill s •T hu rs da y, D ec em be r 1 2, 2 01 3 6 OPINION The headline in last week's edition-- Council OKs pay hike for next term council-- likely raised the hackles of many Halton Hills taxpayers. How could council approve a staff report recommending a pay raise for the next coun- cil (2014-2018) that would see the mayor's sal- ary jump from $58,000 a year to $73,000 and a councilor's salary rise to $29,995 from $24,714? On top of that, benefit coverage for all mem- bers of council will be extended until retirement and they will also be provided full OMERS ben- efits, starting in January. As well, the mayor's car allowance will be in- creased to $495/month in January, and further increased to $661/month starting Dec. 1, 2014. Councillors will also receive an allocation of $3,000 for newsletters, courses, seminars etc. However, it's important to read the story be- hind the headline. A consultant was responsible for surveying council salaries of several area muncipalities (Milton, Newmarket, Clarington, Caledon, Wa- terloo and Aurora) and found Halton Hills of- ficials were paid the least. That is not fair. A full review of council salaries has not been done since 2004-- nine years ago-- so it's fair to say such a review was overdue. Councillors could legitimately make the argu- ment theirs is a thankless job: they are on call 24/7 to answer constituents' concerns, act on their behalf, attend functions and develop strat- egies and plans for the Town, but that is not the point here. They chose this job and could just as easily lose it when the next election rolls around. This is a nothing more than a question of fairness and what is fair is that our next coun- cil members will be paid the average salary of the councillors from those nearby communities listed above. The Independent & Free Press is published Thursday and is one of sev- eral Metroland Media Group Ltd. community newspapers. Editorial and advertising content of The Independent & Free Press is protected by copy- right. Unauthorized use is prohibited. The Independent & Free Press is a member of the Ontario Press Council, which is an independent ethical organization established to deal with editorial concerns. For additional information or to file a complaint, contact info@ ontpress.com or call 416- 340-1981. The Independent & Free Press Fair's fair Letters to the editor Dear editor, Once again, after reading only the headline (Council OKs pay hike, Dec. 5 IFP), I am not impressed with politicians. We citizens are constantly being asked to tighten our belts, accept tax increases, donate to a multitude of charities, etc. Local councillors voted themselves a pay hike. Go figure. Why does the mayor need a raise of $14,931 per year? Some folks don't even make that in 12 months of hard work. Why a car allowance of $495, not to mention the new allowance: $661-plus mileage! I could probably finance a Ferrari for that amount of money! Why, as an afterthought, do they receive one third-tax free? Councillor Jane Fogal, however, takes the cake when she says, "I don't think we should be under- valued for the job we do here." Are these folks so distanced from reality that they don't realize a lot of people are under-valued for the work they do? I know I am. Finally, I would just like to point out that what they're doing is im- portant and should be compensat- ed accordingly. But they are playing with taxpayers' hard-earned cash. Hans Tunney Acton 905-873-0301 Publisher: Dana Robbins General manager: Steve Foreman (sforeman@theifp.ca) Retail advertising manager: Cindi Campbell (ccampbell@theifp.ca) Managing editor: John McGhie (jmcghie@theifp.ca) Distribution manager: Nancy Geissler (ngeissler@theifp.ca) Classifieds/Real Estate Kristie Pells (classified@theifp.ca or realestate@theifp.ca) Classified Call Centre 1-855-415-8237 haltonhillsclassads@metroland.com Accounting 1-866-773-6575 Editorial Cynthia Gamble: News editor (cgamble@theifp.ca) Ted Brown: Photography (tbrown@theifp.ca) Lisa Tallyn: Staff writer (ltallyn@theifp.ca) Eamonn Maher: Staff writer/sports (emaher@theifp.ca) How much will you spend on Christmas gifts this year? • About the same as last year (51%) • Less than last year (38%) • More than last year (11%) WEB POLL RESULTS (Go to www.theifp.ca) Reader unimpressed with council pay hike Soccer program scores Get the latest headlines delivered to your inbox by signing up for our twice weekly electronic newsletter. Go to www.theifp.ca and click on 'Newsletter sign-up' at the bottom of the homepage. Letters must include the author's name, address and daytime phone number. Anony- mous letters will not be published. Letters should not exceed 150 words and may be edited for content and/or length. Publica- tion is not guaranteed. Email: jmcghie@theifp.ca Mail or drop off: Independent & Free Press, 280 Guelph St., Unit 77, Georgetown, ON., L7G 4B1. Letters policy Dear editor, I would like to thank the George- town Soccer Club and their wonder- ful staff, Herminia and Lori at the Georgetown Market Place, all the volunteers and entire community for the continued support. Chance to Play has been success- ful in the past three years in collect- ing gently used soccer uniforms and equipment through a partnership with Georgetown Soccer Club. Each year, we have been able to co-ordinate a donation drop off on Closing Day in September with wonderful success and response from the soccer com- munity. This year is no exception; we were able to have two soccer collec- tions. The donations are much needed for children and youth in develop- ing countries and across Canada in providing opportunities to play a sport that is loved by children and youth. The smiles and excitement of the children seeing the soccer equipment makes the program a success. Please visit www.chancetoplay.ca for addi- tional details. Chance to Play continues to look for opportunities to deliver soccer donations to communities in develop- ing countries and Canada by partner- ing with individual or groups from churches and schools that are travel- ing overseas. Please contact Anita Bergsma at 416-270-9127 or anita.n.bergsma@ gmail.com Anita Bergsma, founder Chance to Play